Modern vs. historic: Plans for an electronic sign at Lowell Elementary sparks opposition

Lowell Elementary School plans to install an electronic reader board near the remodeled 15th Street entrance, but neighbors are pushing back, saying the modern sign would not be compatible with South Hill’s historical aesthetic.

Neighbors received a letter June 19 from Principal Sarah Walker announcing the news of the electronic reader board.

“The historic aesthetic of our old entrance is beautiful, and while we want to continue to honor it as a central feature of our school, it isn’t accessible to all members of our community and doesn’t allow our facility to meet our values and standards to be inclusive,” the letter read. “To help our community navigate our campus and find the new main entrance, we will be installing a new reader board.”

Bellingham Public Schools plans to install electronic reader boards at all its schools. The cost is approximately $70,000 each is funded by the school construction bond, which was approved by voters in February 2018.

The planned reader board for Lowell Elementary will be 8 feet tall and display content about events, important upcoming dates and school-related activities from 7 a.m. to 6p.m. It will be designed to reflect the character of the neighborhood and the school, according to Bellingham Public Schools spokeswoman Dana Smith.

The school received many requests over the years to update its signage for quick and clear communication, she said.

“We are considering all feedback we’re receiving regarding this project and we appreciate the opportunity to engage with the Lowell community, both the neighborhood and the families that the school serves,” Smith said in an email to the Bellingham Herald.

Static images will be shown for a minimum of five seconds. The brightness of the sign is determined by city code mandates and automatically dims after dark.

Smith said the school district is still discussing when construction will start for the electronic reader board.

Pushback from neighbors

Michael Chrzastowski, a board member of the South Hill Neighborhood Association, said he felt blindsided by the news of the electronic reader board.

“There was no inclusion of the neighborhood association in the planning. That hurts because our neighborhood association donates money to Lowell school to help our students,” he said.

Chrzastowski said an electronic reader board is not compatible with the character of the South Hill neighborhood. There are a few homes within a block of Lowell Elementary that have Victorian architecture.

“There’s nothing in the design of what they’re proposing to build to even suggest any kind of attribute or reflection of this late Victorian architecture of the neighborhood,” he said.

Judy Peck, a resident of South Hill, said it is “inappropriate” to put up an electronic reader board in a historic neighborhood.

“This is a dense residential hillside [neighborhood],” she said. “This isn’t a big school with a huge expansive lawn in front of it. Houses are close to the road, close to the street and the homes that are across the street are all very beautiful historic homes that look west toward the water, essentially over the school.”

Peck said in response to the news, she sent an email to 43 of her neighbors, Walker and superintendent of Bellingham Public Schools Greg Baker, expressing the opinion that there should not be an electronic reader board outside the school.

And Chrzastowski said residents are currently gathering signatures on a petition, which states those who sign it are are against the project. It will be submitted to the city and school board.

Chrzastowski said residents are not against a new, non-electric sign. They are simply against an electric one, which would not fit the character of the neighborhood that has no commercial lighting and minimal street lights.

“If the school board absolutely wants to build a sign at the entrance to Lowell school, as long as it’s not this LED display board, we would be 100% on board,” he said.